Yakuza 3 Special Edition £17.99 @ Zavvi [PS3 Games]

Zavvi frequently offer excellent savings on niche games, and it looks like they've undercut the competition yet again. They're currently stocking Yakuza 3 for £17.99: which is about a fiver less than Coolshop, their nearest rival.

Yakuza 3 starts slow, with spiky-haired ex-mobster Kazuma quitting his life of crime and spending a few hours tending to his beloved orphanage. Whilst the first impression is worryingly reminiscent of a shiny piece of DS shovelware (Kazuma's Orphanage Adventures?), you'll soon be launched into an expansive, dangerous city replete with a plethora of side missions, Shenmue-style minigames and plenty of political intrigue. Oh, and more street brawling than even Mayor Haggar could handle.

The combat is plentiful, brutal and sadisticallysatisfying. Kazuma can use a range of combos, weapons and unremittingly violent 'heat' moves to lay into the hordes of thugs that infest Okinawa. After all, Yakuza 3 is a beat-em-up at heart and the brawling is consistently enjoyable (apart from a couple of cheap bosses). The huge number of missions and subquests also lend Yakuza 3 enough content to rival a fully-fledged RPG.

The European Special Edition also contains four pieces of DLC that add extra value to the package. Whilst they mainly consist of 'boss rush' style encounters, there's a fair amount of extra gameplay to be found here.

There are a few problems with pacing, storytelling and balance- but on the whole Yakuza 3 is an impressive PS3 exclusive that deserves your attention. Why not check out Brendan's full review if you want to know more?